1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to means for adjusting shaving geometry, particularly to means for displacing a razor blade with respect to a skin guard. More specifically, the invention relates to the use of eccentrically related circular structures for such adjustment of shaving geometry.
2. Prior Art
The present invention is useful in providing an adjustable shaving geometry in razors of the type disclosed in Iten et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,648,365, assigned to the assignee of the present invention and known as the "FLICKER".RTM. razor. While U.S. Pat. No. 3,648,365 discloses an environment for the present invention and is incorporated herein by reference, no suggestion is provided therein either of the broad concept of adjustability of shaving geometry or, more particularly, of the present approach utilized for such adjustment.
Razors having adjustable shaving geometries are known, but none of the prior art discloses an adjusting mechanism at all similar to the present invention.
Ayotte, U.S. Pat. No. 3,015,158, rocks a clamping plate and blade on a crowned fulcrum ridge by means of a blade adjusting screw. Nissen et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,871,077 moves a guard member in order to cause movement of a blade cutting edge, thereby to adjust the shaving geometry. Neither of these references, however, discloses the present structure for vertical blade motion with respect to a skin guard. Other references are known which disclose the movement of adjustable levers and guards, but not of shaving blades. For example, Perry U.S. Pat. No. 3,783,507 shows a camming member in FIG. 20. The camming member has a groove 56, with a center which is offset and forwardly displaced from the center of its pivot axis, to move a guard. Nissen U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,375,578 and 3,587,174 show cams in FIGS. 21 and 33 operating with a guide plate camming lever having two cam follower surfaces, the lever having two identical sets of arcuate segments with differing radii. The apparatus is used to move an adjusting lever as disclosed at column 8 in '578, for example. Kuhnl U.S. Pat. No. 3,555,681 utilizes rotatable cams or bars for moving a magazine cover with respect to the body, thus moving a guard with respect to the blade edge. Narizzano U.S. Pat. No. 2,958,128 incorporates a cam to provide lateral motion of a guard.
Other prior art references include Schick U.S. Pat. No. 1,584,811, Smith et al. U.S. Pat. No. 2,043,124, Jones et al. U.S. Pat. No. 2,587,625, Perry U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,364,570 and 3,364,571, and Braginetz U.S. Pat. No. 3,619,901. Any adjustability disclosed in these references is even further removed from that hereinabove described, and pertains to the utilization of cams, for example, to adjust guard positioning.
In short, none of the references provides a simply implemented asjusting means for displacing a blade with respect to a skin guard, or for displacing a blade carrier having a plurality of blades mounted thereon with respect to a cover member having a skin guard thereon. Moreover, none of the known adjusting means is suitable to a circular razor structure such as disclosed in Iten et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,648,365.